A Leland man faces various felony charges after police said he led them on a high-speed chase Feb. 12 that began in Leland and ended in Wilmington.

Leland police have charged 34-year-old Jario Checo with three counts of second-degree kidnapping, one count of assault by strangulation and one count of domestic assault on a female, Leland Lt. Jeremy Humphries wrote in a news release.

Checo is accused of holding his wife and children hostage before the chase to Wilmington Police Department headquarters on 615 Bess Street.

SUNSET BEACH — Sunset Beach Town Council has voted to keep the Sunset at Sunset festival under town domain in the face of an accounting discrepancy that new town finance director Bonnie Schwerd says must be changed to align with state-mandated guidelines.

The matter came to light at a specially called council meeting Monday afternoon, Feb. 23, in the town hall conference room, when council unanimously approved keeping Sunset at Sunset under the town.

Some people hike for fun. Others hike to become one with nature. But Kellie English Bemelmans is hiking to raise money to build specialized homes for disabled veterans.

The Carolina Beach resident, whose parents live in Brunswick County, will hike the full length of the Arizona National Scenic Trail, 800 miles of land from Mexico to Utah, beginning Sunday, March 1, to raise awareness and money for Homes For Our Troops, a nonprofit providing housing to critically injured veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

BOLIVIA — The mother of a Brunswick County Early College High School student is upset the Brunswick County Board of Education won’t allow her daughter to play soccer at her home high school.

Dana Varnam, whose daughter attends the school on the campus of Brunswick Community College, went to the board’s policy and curriculum committee meeting Thursday, Feb. 19, to find out whether her daughter would be allowed to play with the team at West Brunswick.

Last week in the North Carolina General Assembly, we had less activity than normal because of the weather in the Raleigh area, we had no vote sessions in the House of Representatives and few votes in the Senate, and we were able to put more work behind the scenes into some of the bills we hope to file and pass.